The Trump administration halted its weekly report on sanctuary cities Tuesday over concerns about the accuracy of the data being reported.
The Decline Detainer Outcome Reports (DDOR) aim to highlight local and state governments that refuse to cooperate with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s detainer program. Local officials who do cooperate with the program were angry about being included on the lists, The Hill reported.
Franklin County, Pa. was placed on ICE’s list of top 10 noncompliant jurisdictions despite providing lists of detainees to the feds and allowing ICE agents to interview its inmates, The New York Times reported.
ICE acknowledged there was a processing error from Jan. 28 and Feb. 3, which “incorrectly attributed detainers to Franklin County, Iowa; Franklin County, New York; Franklin County, Pennsylvania; and Montgomery County, Iowa that were in fact issued to agencies outside of the respective county’s jurisdiction in similarly named locations.”
ICE spokeswoman Sarah Rodriguez said the agency will “analyze and refine its reporting methodologies.”
The Trump administration has been at odds with cities for not adhering to ICE’s detainer policies. Local authorities have argued that detaining anyone, including illegal immigrations, past the mandated time would put cities and courts at risk of a civil rights lawsuit.
Local communities have also said that immigrant communities have become more reluctant to approach law enforcement as a witness or a victim of a crime because they fear their immigration status would be at risk.
"It is much safer for all involved – the community, law enforcement, and even the criminal alien – if ICE officers take custody in the controlled environment of another law enforcement agency," Rodriguez said.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions told prosecutors in border states to aggressively pursue illegal immigrants.
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